Olivelle, Davis and friends on Hindu law

Patrick Olivelle and Donald R. Davis, both of the University of Texas at Austin, have published the co-edited volume, The Oxford History of Hinduism: Hindu Law. A New History of Dharmasastra with Oxford University Press. From the publisher:

Through pointed studies of important aspects and topics of dharma in Dharmasastra, this comprehensive collection shows that the history of Hinduism cannot be written without the history of Hindu law. Part one provides a concise overview of the literary genres in which Dharmasastra was written with attention to chronology and historical developments. This study divides the tradition into its two major historical periods -- the origins and formation of the classical texts and the later genres of commentary and digest -- in order to provide a thorough, but manageable overview of the textual bases of the tradition. Part two presents descriptive and historical studies of all the major substantive topics of Dharmasastra. Each chapter offers readers with direct knowledge of the debates, transformations, and fluctuating importance of each topic. Readers will also gain insight into the ethos or worldview of religious law in Hinduism, enabling them to get a feel for how dharma authors thought and why. Part three contains brief studies of the impact and reception of Dharmasastra in other South Asian cultural and textual traditions. Part four draws inspiration from "critical terms" in contemporary legal and religious studies to analyze Dharmasastra texts. Contributors offer interpretive views of Dharmasastra that start from hermeneutic and social concerns today.

Praise for the book: 

 "[T]his is a work that will inform the field for decades to come." -Brian A. Hatcher

Table of Contents after the jump:


Introduction, Donald R. Davis, Jr.

PART I: HISTORY 
1. Social and Literary History of Dharmasastra: The Foundational Texts, Patrick Olivelle
2. Social and Literary History of Dharmasastra: Commentaries and Legal Digests, Donald R. Davis, Jr. and David Brick

PART II: TOPICS 
3. Epistemology of Law: dharmapramana, Patrick Olivelle
4. Social Classes: varna, Mikael Aktor
5. Orders of Life: asrama, Patrick Olivelle
6. Rites of Passage: samskara, Axel Michaels
7. The Vedic Student: brahmacarin, Timothy Lubin
8. The Vedic Graduate: snataka, Timothy Lubin
9. Marriage and the Householder: vivaha, grhastha, Stephanie W. Jamison 
10. Women: stridharma, Stephanie W. Jamison
11. Children: putra, duhitr, Donald R. Davis, Jr.
12. Inheritance: dayabhaga, Ludo Rocher
13. Daily Duties: ahnika, Timothy Lubin
14. Food and Dietary Rules: abhaksya, abhojya, Patrick Olivelle
15. Gifting: dana, David Brick
16. Funeral and Ancestral Offerings: antyesti, sraddha, Matthew R. Sayers
17. Impurity and Purification: asauca, Mikael Aktor
18. Ascetics: pravrajita, vanaprastha, Patrick Olivelle
19. Law During Emergencies: apaddharma, Adam Bowles
20. King: rajadharma, Mark McClish
21. Punishment: danda, Mark McClish
22. Legal Procedure: vyavahara, Patrick Olivelle
23. Titles of Law: vyavaharapada, Mark McClish 
24. Penance: prayascitta, David Brick
25. Vows and Observances: vrata, Donald R. Davis, Jr.
26. Pilgrimage: tirthayatra, Knut A. Jacobsen
27. Images and Temples: pratistha, Richard H. Davis

PART III: INFLUENCES 
28. History of the Reception of Dharmasastra, Donald R. Davis, Jr.
29. A Buddhist Vinaya as a Source for Indian Law, Gregory Schopen

PART IV: INTERPRETIVE APPROACHES 
30. Body, Ariel Glucklich
31. Emotions, Maria Heim
32. Ritual, Axel Michaels
33. Self and Subjectivity: The Wandering Ascetic and the Manifest World, Jonardon Ganeri
34. Material Culture and Society: The Ancient Indian Alestake, James McHugh
35. Embodiment of Dharma in Animals, Andrea Gutierrez
36. Vernacularization, Christian Lee Novetzke 
37. Economics and Business as vaisyadharma, Donald R. Davis, Jr.

Bibliography

Further information is available here.